Non-Professional Fijian Rugby Players’ Cultural Transitioning into New Zealand

Abstract

There is growing research interest in athlete mobility as a consequence of globalization and the personal, cultural and contextual adjustments required in transitioning from one culture to another (see, Ryba, Haapanen, Mosek & Kwok, 2012). While this work has provided valuable knowledge about the challenges facing professional athletes transitioning from one culture to another it pays little attention to the experiences of non-professional and non-elite athletes. To redress this oversight this article presents the findings of a study on the experiences of Fijian non-elite rugby players who had moved to New Zealand as adolescents to pursue opportunities in rugby.